ALC calls for budget to establish freight strategy framework

THE Australian Logistics Council released its 2019-20 Federal Budget submission, saying it must establish the right framework to support the implementation of an effective National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy.

ALC CEO Kirk Coningham pointed out that the Federal Budget will be the last delivered prior to the release of the National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy.

“ALC has been a long-term advocate for this strategy. Our members understand that a national economy needs to adopt a consistent national approach to freight movement,” he said.

“However, the best strategy in the world counts for little if there are insufficient resources in place to support its delivery. Accordingly, ALC’s submission encourages the federal government to use this year’s budget to establish the right frameworks to support the delivery of a strategy that will meet the needs of our industry and the Australian economy as a whole.”

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Mr Coningham said ALC made 19 recommendations addressing two core objectives: ensuring those responsible for implementing the strategy have adequate resources and supporting specific infrastructure, safety and regulatory initiatives that will improve the performance of supply chains.

“These include recommendations to support key federal agencies, as well as state and local governments, in delivering significant reforms around planning, corridor protection, road pricing and data collection that will allow us to better monitor performance and more effectively target infrastructure investment,” he said.

“Additionally, there are specific recommendations to support crucial infrastructure and regulatory initiatives, such as better freight rail linkages to ports, infrastructure to hasten uptake of electric vehicles in the freight sector, maintenance of the industry master code for heavy vehicle safety, and development of a national rail plan that will finally deliver the regulatory consistency the industry seeks.

“Implementing these recommendations as part of the 2019-20 Federal Budget will significantly improve the efficiency and safety of Australia’s supply chains, and contribute to the delivery of a more effective National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy.”